Dapplepaw's Promise
by Apollo's Child
Summary: Mapleshade has a new apprentice-Dapplepaw! Everything goes wrong when Mapleshade thinks up a new promise, for Dapplepaw to obey every command given by her clanmates or Mapleshade! R&R!
1. Mapleshade's Idea

Dapplepaw's Promise

Mapleshade POV

"I can teach you everything you need to know to become the best warrior in all the Clans."

Dapplepaw looked up at me, awe in her eyes. She was a new apprentice in ThunderClan, perfect for training in the Dark Forest.

"Really?" she asked, her tail quivering. I nodded. "Really. But you must promise me something. Promise that no matter what happens, you will do whatever your clan and I ask of you."

Dapplepaw bent her head. "I promise!" I stood up. "Good. Let's begin."

I paused for a moment, then leaped at her. She squealed, trying to escape my grip. I held her steady. "First rule: Always be ready for attack."

_The Next Morning..._

I watched from the Dark Forest, making sure Dapplepaw carried out her promise. She yawned, sat up, and walked out of the den.

"'Morning, Dapplepaw! Can't you get up later?" said her littermate, Clearpaw. Dapplepaw rolled her eyes. I immediately went to remind her of her promise.

"Dapplepaw!"

"Who's there?"

"Remember your promise!"

"Mapleshade?' Dapplepaw said frantically as I disappeared. "Where are you?"

I smirked. She reminded me of my old apprentice Crookedstar. '_Mapleshade? Mapleshade! Help me, I'm so useless! Please, Mapleshade, help me fulfill my destiny!'_ I thought. Meanwhile, Dapplepaw had made a mental note to stay in her nest longer than usual.

"Dapplepaw? Can you take out my ticks?" said Mousefur. Dapplepaw nodded. Just then, her mentor, or should I say, _other_ mentor, strolled up to her. "Not so fast, Dapplepaw. Don't you want to go hunting?" Graystripe told her sternly. Dapplepaw looked nervously from Mousefur to Graystripe. I snorted. A promise is a promise.

"I will! But…I promised Mousefur I would take out her ticks first!" she said to Graystripe.

"Just do both at the same time then." Graystripe said jokingly, rolling his eyes. Dapplepaw nodded. "Okay!"

I trailed the patrol of Dapplepaw, Graystripe, Brambleclaw, and…Mousefur. Dapplepaw pulled out Mousefur's ticks while keeping her ears pricked for scents of prey. Mousefur grumbled. "Seriously, Graystripe? Why'd you have to suggest that? You know apprentices take those things seriously!"

Graystripe shrugged. "I didn't make her."

Dapplepaw stopped pulling ticks and dropped into a hunting crouch. She leaped into a bush and came out with a starling.

"Good catch, Dapplepaw!" Graystripe complimented. Dapplepaw nodded her thanks and kept pulling out ticks.

"I'm wondering if this was worth it." Mousefur grunted. Dapplepaw rolled her eyes like, '_So am I!"_ and tossed another tick off Mousefur's pelt.

_Back at camp…_

Dapplepaw dropped her prey off at the fresh-kill pile and lay down in the late-afternoon sun. What a waste of good training time. Her sister Clearpaw lay down beside her.

"You've done so much work today, you should become a warrior this second! Go ask Firestar!" she said sarcastically. Dapplepaw groaned.

"What?"

"Nothing…I'll be right back."

As she walked towards Firestar's den, I appeared in front of her.

"Give him this before you ask." I said, dropping a piece of rotten fruit at her paws.

"What's this?" she asked, staring at it in disgust. I nudged it closer to her.

"Just do it. Your promise, remember?"

"Right…hey, can I take that back?"

"NO!" I yelled and disappeared. She took the fruit in her jaws and headed to Firestar's den.

Inside, Firestar was pacing. Dapplepaw dropped the fruit at his paws.

"Jayfeather said to eat this…" she explained.

Firestar looked at it. "Are you sure?"

"Yes."

Firestar took a bite out of it, and gulped the rest down afterwards. After a few moments, he looked up. His eyes went out of focused, and he smiled. "Whazzup with youuuuuu?" he said, slurring his words together. Dapplepaw frowned.

"I was wondering…if I could become a warrior?"

**Please review! Tell me if you liked it. Oh and a couple things to check out: The poll on Artemis's Hunters profile (vote for me!), my other stories, and my forum call Monster Doughnut Shop: Monsters Only! R&R! CC welcomed!**


	2. Firestar's Drunk

**New chapter! In this chapter, you will see what becomes of poor, poor, drunk Firestar. Special shout-out to Anna C. Poseidon, because she did me a favor, and her stories are hilarious! R&R!**

Chapter 2

Mapleshade POV

"Very, very, well done, apprentice," I said thoughtfully, watching Dapplepaw from my place in the Dark Forest. I leaned forward and listened more carefully.

"Youuuuuu wanna becommmme a worrrrrryor? Worriers ain't noooo funnn, Doodlepaws. Youuuuu mean a _warrior?_" Firestar rambled, his words slurred. Dapplepaw shifted her paws nervously.

"Um, a warrior sounds nice. Maybe we better have the ceremony later though…" Dapplepaw replied, trailing off when she looked at Firestar. Firestar scoffed.

"Nooo, no young 'un, I'm perfectlllyyyy ablllle, don' worryyy. You'lll get yer ceremonyyy nowww!" he assured her. Look what a piece of rotted fruit does for you.

Firestar ambled out of the den, barely staying upright. Dapplepaw followed awkwardly. When they got outside, Sandstorm yowled in alarm. "Firestar! What happened!?"

Firestar ignored her and turned to Jayfeather, who was frantically angling his ears in all directions, probably trying to find out what was going on.

"Thank ye kindly, blind one! Much obliged for that piece 'o' fruuuit!" Firestar thanked Jayfeather. Jayfeather scowled.

"Lets all gather 'round the campfire now, young un's. I got a tale to tellll! All cats who are hunt enough to old their own prey, come 'ere for the tale of Doodlepaws. Doodlepaws is a worrier now! Yeah! Her nammme shall beeee…hmmm…I know! DoodleNoodle. Everrrryyyonnnee cheeeer nnow!

'Doodlenoodle' froze like a stiff spaghetti noodle. The whole Clan turned to look at her, except Sandstorm and Jayfeather, who were on their hind legs, looking at Firestar's head like they were searching for ticks.

"There must be a bump or scratch here somewhere; he wouldn't just go crazy…" Jayfeather muttered. Sandstorm looked doubtful.

"I don't know, I mean, he's seen Bluestar go crazy, Spottedleaf die, Honeyfern die, Longtail go blind, Tigerstar killing and being killed, Scourge attacking the Clan with Bloodclan, Windclan in danger, badger attacks, Cinderpelt dying, his daughter Leafpool banished from medicine cat duties-"

"I get it! But he's not like that!" Jayfeather snapped. Firestar, in the meantime was swaying back and forth, humming the Twilight Zone theme song.

I scratched my claws on a tree to sharpen them, so I was ready for the night's training session. Jayfeather had finally realized that Firestar was drunk, and he gave him some yarrow. Brambleclaw had assured Dapplepaw, or should I say Doodlenoodle, that she would get renamed.

Suddenly Doodlenoodle's sleeping shape appeared next to me. I woke her up with a sharp prod.

"Ow! Oh…Mapleshade. Hello. Hey, I know I promised, but could I _not _do what people ask? At least not when they are being sarcastic? 'Cause it's gotten me into so much trouble…" she said sleepily. I growled and scratched her ear.

"No!" I hissed. "You must stick to your promise! Do you want to be the greatest warrior ever known? Do you want to live up to your Clan's expectations? Just because you have a _slightly _unique name-"

"_Doodle. Noodle._"

"Well, yes, but that's beside the point! Listen, you are going to go through with this, and we are going to train. NOW!"

"…Yes, Mapleshade…" Doodlenoodle said glumly. I nodded in satisfaction, and lunged at her.


	3. The Nose Problem

**Hi again, I know I haven't updated in a while, but I have a lot of in-progress stories, so I delayed this one a bit. But since I know you're probably all DYING to read the next chapter (Right? RIGHT?), I decided to update, that's right, NOW. At the end there will be a contest, so don't rush to post your fabulous review immediately!**

Mapleshade POV

"Remember the move I taught you last time, mouse brain! The forest's no place for cats that fight like crow-food, Dap-DoodleNoodle. _Put muscle into it!_" I hissed. DoodleNoodle cowered beneath my paws which were pinning her down. I loosened my grip so we could start again, since the wimp was obviously defeated.

"_Mrow!"_ DoodleNoodle yowled, and shot up at me, claws outstretched. I heard a rustle in the bushes nearby as DoodleNoodle pushed me to the ground, followed by a _mrow_ of laughter.

"Nice job, Mapleshade. Hey, DoodleNoodle, you should be _Mapleshade's _mentor!" said Brokenstar's hiss. DoodleNoodle laughed, then went silent. She whispered in my ear.

"He's my Clanmate; you said everyone in the here was part of my Clan!"

"Not in this case! Ignore him!" I spat, the power of Brokenstar's words just dawning on smiled, if cats can smile, and straightened up.

"Get back to training, apprentice. Mice like you won't last a day in Clan life."

I literally smoked with anger. My tail tip turned just a tad redder, and steam rose off my pelt. What did I ever see in this apprentice?

"Now, now, don't get your temper up. You can't train in a bad mood. So, I think I'll let you stay here and get ready for tomorrow night, when you must beat me in battle to become a warrior on my terms," she snickered. I pushed her off me, and hissed. Brokenstar had left in a flurry of paws and whiskers so that I didn't kill his spirit for eternity.

DoodleNoodle was already falling asleep. Or…falling awake? Rising awake. Flying awake. Oh, whatever. She was sound awake and drifting away when I got my claws on her nose. The rest of her disappeared, but to my surprise, the nose was still in my paw. I dropped it in disgust.

"What in DarkClan?" I cursed, staring at the nose in disbelief. I was about to bound away when I heard a squeal.

"_She said I'm CUTE!" _said the weird creature that galloped onto the scene. It looked like a tiny horse, but his black, round nose glowed faintly red. I could hear a whistling noise…from his nose? What is with noses these days? The terrifying creature took one look at me and bowed his head.

"Hey. I'm Rudolph." Rudolph introduced himself shyly. I was speechless. It was like hell. But then again, this was hell. But it was the Dark Forest…which is hell. Hell is confusing. Oops, off topic. Anyway, Rudolph looked at the nose on the ground.

"That nose is perfect!" he exclaimed, and with a pop, _his_ nose fell off, to reveal a red, shiny, bright, nose.

"Too many noses…" I mumbled, still in shock. Rudolph didn't notice. Instead, he picked up DoodleNoodle's nose and stuck it on his nose. The way he looked…like a glowing piece of crow-food.

"Bye now! Or…could I walk you home?" Rudolph asked timidly. I shook my head. Rudolph shrugged.

"Ohhhhkay. Bye-bye!"

"What an idiot." I muttered when he was out of earshot. I decided to check in on how DoodleNoodle and her Clanmates reacted to the missing nose. This should be interesting…

"DoodleNoodle! Seriously, I wasn't serious the other day when I told you to get up later!" Clearpaw's voice rang through the Warrior's den. "Brambleclaw sent me to get you to go on a patrol with me, you, and Squirrelflight and Firestar! _Wake up!_"

DoodleNoodle raised her head sleepily. She mumbled something like, "You were serious enough for Mapleshade," and got out of her nest. Clearpaw rolled her eyes and nudged DoodleNoodle out of the den.

Outside, Firestar was shaking his head vigorously, with Jayfeather muttering things beside him. I heard, "It's just a hangover. Twolegs get it all the time, according to StarClan. They told me you'd be alright. Just go, get out of the camp for awhile, and _bring back some prey for StarClan's sake!_" said Jayfeather assuredly. Firestar had started gagging, and knocking his head on the ground.

DoodleNoodle looked nervous as she approached her leader. Fervently she poked his shoulder.

"Um, Firestar? Are you ready for patrol?"

"As ready as I'll ever be, _DoodleNoodle._"

"About that…could I be renamed? I could still be an apprentice. Or a warrior, but with an, ah, improved name?"

"Oh, I don't know. Why don't I just, say, give you a rotten piece of fruit that dear Jayfeather prepared, nice and alcoholic?! Then you wouldn't even care about your name. Or anything, 'Noodle." Firestar spat cruelly. Squirrelflight, who had been listening, looked taken aback.

"How about we just, go on patrol, hey?" she suggested cautiously. Firestar nodded, and walked right into Doodle Noodle as if she weren't there. He just kept pushing forward, his face unreadable.

"Hmm, this is odd, isn't it, Jayfeather? There seems to be an invisible force here, blocking my way. A very _Doodley, _and _Noodley, _barrier, don't you think? Odd," Firestar said in an attempt at cruel sarcasm.

DoodleNoodle hung her head and feebly moved out of the way. Firestar's expression turned to mock surprise.

"Well, that's funny, the barrier moved away! I guess barriers have _feelings!_ Just like _cats! And LEADERS!"_ he said, raising his voice and stalking past 'the barrier' and into the camp exit. Jayfeather rolled his eyes.

"Come, Squirrelflight, Clearpaw. We have a patrol to perform."

The rest of the patrol was filled with prey being scared off by Firestar's random, hurtful comments about DoodleNoodle. I guess she wasn't becoming deputy any time soon. That's a shame.

But no one noticed the missing nose.

_At The Gathering_

"Hunting is well in WindClan; no sicknesses have come our way in moons. I suppose all the Clans have been doing well, since it's Greenleaf. Firestar, would you like to share your news and wrap this up?" announced Onestar. Firestar was the only leader left to share news.

"Well, what a tale I have to tell you. A fine young apprentice who you may know, Dapplepaw, was doing well in ThunderClan. Then, one day, she decided that she wanted to become a warrior. That's right, a warrior. As a result, her name is now DoodleNoodle." A murmur spread through the audience, followed by a laugh. DoodleNoodle shrunk down to the ground in shame. Firestar cleared his throat in annoyance.

"How did she accomplish that, you ask? Well, oh boy, she came to my den, and GOT ME DRUNK! DRUNK I TELL YOU! That's right. Then, when I was all mixed up, she asked, simply asked, if she could become a warrior. In my state, the best warrior name I could think up was DoodleNoodle. And I say she deserved it!"

Yowls of agreement met Firestar's meow. Some of DoodleNoodle's Clanmates formed a protective circle around her. She puffed out her chest, all of a sudden, and yowled for quiet.

"I submit to you that it was MAPLESHADE! SHE FORCED ME!"

For a moment there was silence. Looks of, "_Huh! Who the hell is Mapleshade?" _were exchanged. Mapleshade _is_ in hell. Since _I_ am Mapleshade. And the Dark Forest, is hell. Oh no, here we go again.

Now the clans would gossip for moons, all because of my brilliant plan. Ah, hahahahaha. If DoodleNoodle _really _believed that what I was doing was for her leadership, she was wrong.

All I want is to humiliate ThunderClan!

**Whew. That took awhile to write. Well, here is the contest I promised you:**

**Who is Firestar's mate's warrior kit's ex-mate's father's enemy?**

**The first person that answers that will get a gigantic, capital-letter shout-out, and all the runner-ups will get a teensy, tiny, but still valuable, shout-out. Good Luck!**


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